Star Wars Episode VIII: Dawn of the Prophecy
by Corelli Sonatas
Summary: The galaxy is at war...again. This time, the most unlikely candidates are on the run, while the duplicitous Darth Sloan reveals himself to the peoples of every planet, convincing them that Han and Leia Solo have kept their daughter - a 'secret weapon' - in hiding for six years. Time goes on, and Force-sensitive Emily Solo realizes her true enemy after it is too late.
1. Six Years Later

**_Foreword: This is a sequel to Star Wars Episode VII: Secrecy and Vengeance. __For a fuller understanding, please refer to its following chapters for a quick synopsis of the first installment in this story. Thank you._**

**_7. An Unbearable Education; 17. Light of the Sun; A Woman of Mystery; 25. Expanding Trust; 32. A Different Luke; 33. Conclusion_**

* * *

><p>"Watch this, Uncle Luke!"<p>

There was a giddy mixture of laughter and youthful squealing as he watched his niece in awe. In a matter of seconds, Emily had soared from one high beam through a ring-shaped simulator that hovered in the air. Her expression radiated excitement as her body experienced the effects of Naboo's gravitational pull; soon the girl was within meters from the ground. To conclude her performance for her uncle, Emily achieved several somersaults in midair before meeting the spongy floor-mat with a perfect hand-stand. "Ta-da!" she exclaimed.

"That was amazing!" Luke congratulated her, proceeding to the floor-mat. He'd kept his distance from the demonstration, mainly because the equipment - combined with his niece's incredible abilities - simultaneously frightened and fascinated him.

Emily was hardly panting. "I'm going to show Mother and Father when they arrive," she decided with a grin. Her heart was pounding, but this sort of exercise only motivated the six year-old to do more of it. Midi-chlorions abounded in every fiber of her being, and it was not the first time Luke had observed her little show. _How many times has she been down here, and with the luck of keeping it a secret from the palace guards?_ he wondered with a smile.

Emily frowned at him just then; her Force-sensitivity allowed her every advantage to identifying and completely discerning her uncle's thoughts. "We're not going to get caught," she assured him solemnly. Looking around the room, however, Emily only felt more nervous about the suspicious nature of her practice-room. From bars and beams to mats and foam objects, the room was littered with every kind of training tool. It resembled a gymnasium in which the most obsessed of gymnasts would devote hours to training; but of course Luke loved his niece's passion.

She was strong in the Force, and so far, he detected nothing faulty in her midi-chlorion mannerisms. _She's a great kid,_ he thought with gratitude.

It was true. The child had never caused either of her parents any trouble, and Luke could only guess her near-perfection was only the precursor to the fulfillment of the prophecy of which Yoda spoke at the hour of Emily's birth. Han had never been very fond of his daughter's attentiveness to the Force, but even he'd come to see her to be much more than a bunch of unusually powerful cells.

Leia, too, had always been worried about Emily's involvement with Jedi training. By the girl's third birthday, she had attained status as a Jedi Knight, and Luke promised her that - once she turned seven - her studies would be complete, and she would become a Jedi Master.

"Mother and Father are coming!" Emily suddenly predetermined, her eyes still closed in meditation with the Force. Her delicate eyelashes sung melodies as she reopened her eyes to glance at her uncle. "I can't wait for them to see," she breathed. Luke couldn't help but chuckle.

"You're going to do the one with the -"

"Uncle Luke, shhh! We can't give it away!" The child rushed to her proper position on the cushiony mat, where she then began to stretch in preparation. After only ten seconds, Han and Leia were there. _She's darn accurate at her predictions,_ Luke mused.

Han was the first to peek in through the tall, metal door. This "practice room" had assumed the title of "royal family all-purpose room" in order to ensure the maximum possible privacy. Leia soon appeared, her anticipation and pride evident in her glowing face. Emily waved at them from her starting-position. "Hello! Are you ready to watch my final act?"

"When were the first ones?" muttered Han to Luke and Leia. "What if I wanted to see them too?"

Nudging him playfully, Leia reminded her husband, "You insisted upon visiting good 'ol Lando rather than arriving earlier to this." Luke gestured for them to return all attention to Emily, whose body had leaped to the medium-height bar. "All right!" she called proudly. "One...two...three!"

It was a series of twists and flips, but what took all three adults by surprise was Emily's ability to bring a soft, foam ball that sat motionless on the ground up to her height. She held it there, while also utilizing her left hand to swing from bar-to-bar. If at any moment the child felt nervous, it did not show. Leia couldn't stop thinking, astounded as she was, _How the hell does she do all that...and without a single mishap?_

The performance lasted for the duration of two minutes, and at last the girl was in the rewarding embrace of her parents and uncle. Leia kissed her daughter's forehead and admitted, "You never cease to fascinate me, my darling. I know you work very hard to do that -"

"It's easy, Mother!" replied Emily. "It's not hard!"

Han shook his head, believing his daughter to have misinterpreted Leia's statement. "No, sweetheart, she means that it takes a lot of effort and time to perfect that."

Luke tried to discourage the parents from explaining further, because the girl merely gazed at her father and mother with a furrowed brow and sensitive eyes. Leia could have sworn Emily was on the verge of tears.

"Honey," Han attempted a second time, holding his daughter's shoulder with a firm hand. "We thought it was really wonderful. We're very proud of you."

"Thank you, Father. Thank you, Mother." Emily hugged both of them happily, but her entire demeanor had altered. Han presumed it had been his fault. "Hey, I'm sorry, sweetheart. Don't worry about it."

Luke suddenly gasped. Emily shot her head in his direction, their feelings having been concurrent. "Uncle Luke..." she began, trepidation casting a terrible gloom upon both her voice and her countenance. Leia moved toward her daughter for comfort, but she could sense nothing yet. Han only stared.

The big, metal door to the "royal family all-purpose room" burst open, scaring the daylights out of everyone except for Emily. It was just a guard of Theed Palace, but his grave expression communicated trouble. Luke was certain the poor man's present fright had hindered him from noticing the conspicuous gymnasium set-up in the room. "Your Majesties, I...regret to inform you that..." He made perfect eye contact with Han and Leia. "A man by the name of 'Sloan' asks for you."

Leia halted in her breathing.


	2. Naboo Against Them

Myriad sensations blighted Han, Leia, and Luke with the inability to move. _After six years of silence and tranquility, _thought Luke,_ we should have seen this coming._

The guard, on the other hand, had not expected to see a young child with the royal family. "Your Majesties, who...whose child is this? Where are her parents?"

Han gulped. _I guess it's about time things fall apart in all directions,_ he decided. Desiring not to respond directly to the guard's question, he pulled his daughter closer to his chest and replied, "Her parents are close enough -"

"These are my parents," Emily blurted suddenly. Leia closed her eyes in despair; she should have known her daughter wouldn't retain any truth from a single person. Reverting her attention to the palace guard, the Queen inquired, "Where is this man who wishes to speak to us?"

Still rather speechless from Emily's revelation, the guard had no choice but to impart an answer: "He has gathered Naboo's entire population of humankind, your Majesty. His purpose for doing so is quite unknown..."

"Damn it," Han muttered quietly, lifting his daughter into his arms while signaling to Luke and his wife that they all needed to flee the planet. Now.

But Emily wouldn't allow it. "Father, we mustn't leave Naboo!" She struggled to free herself from Han's firm hold. Meanwhile the guard was absorbing every audible word.

"No one must leave! Theed would crumble, should your Majesties desert it with this man in control."

"In _control?"_ repeated Luke. He was beginning to sense the trap in which Sloan had put them.

"Precisely," came the guard's response. "If you leave -"

Leia cut in. "Han, you get her to the hangar. Luke and I will go."

The Corellian shook his head, eyes widening with fright. "No. _You_ will come with me, and so will Luke. We're not going to fall for this trick Sloan's playing..." But even as Han contemplated his seemingly safe plan, he imagined the hatred that would fall upon the Solo name for having escaped Naboo in the midst of a crisis. _We've done this twice before,_ he reminded himself bleakly.

"Well, what are we going to do?" Leia questioned her husband and brother, her countenance severely grave. Emily - who was still in the arms of her father - made eye contact with her mother, sending through the Force the answer: _We have to face him... I sense the evil within him, but I've never seen him before. I know you and Father and Uncle Luke have talked about him._

Yes, sweetheart, Leia communicated in return. _But you should never encounter him. He is a Sith Lord, and therefore he is too dangerous for you._

_But he couldn't be,_ Emily countered, only to be interrupted by the scream of something that had shattered. Han presumed it to have been one of the palace's massive glass windows. He shot his head in Leia's direction.

They knew what had to be done.

And it wasn't going to be pretty.

...

Emily had never felt ashamed of her existence. She'd come close; Han and Leia had made every effort to conceal any knowledge of their daughter from the galaxy, and as a result the girl had often wondered, _Is there something wrong with me?_

At the moment, nothing could reassure the child otherwise: one million upset humans occupied every meter inside and outside Theed. The sight was incomprehensible to Leia, whose mind was already spinning with the fear that their dreaded nemesis would emerge from the nearest crowd, evil grin and all.

He didn't, but what the Dark Lord of the Sith did have to offer was a piercing curse from behind the royal family. Emily had sensed it but had been too overwhelmed by the innumerable crowd staring and gasping at her (in particular).

Han, Luke, and Leia all turned in shock. "What the hell?" Han spat. Sloan appeared a scary six years older, but his familiarly malevolent eyes had succeeded the years in sharpness. "At last," he breathed, dramatically shaking his head in mock sincerity. His voice echoed across the perimeters, which Leia discovered - by a quick glance at a gadget that the Sith Lord had in hand - to be a purposeful enhancement for the encounter. _Obviously and unfortunately, _the woman decided, _Sloan wants the entire planet to witness this._

Sloan stared intently at a the child before bellowing into the amplifier. "Can you believe this?" he asked the crowd, taking casual strides around the front of the palace. "Your King and Queen have lied to you, to every single one of you! Look at the girl! My good people, this _child_ is the offspring of your leaders!"

"This is absurd!" Luke exclaimed, storming over to Sloan in fury. The Sith Lord acted afraid, whereupon some of the villagers shouted to Luke, "Do not harm him!"

The distraction gave time for more brainwashing from Theed's pompous visitor. "These, your _leaders,_ have kept the girl a secret from all of you because -"

"Because you've wanted to take her!" Leia interrupted, fuming both as a politician whose inferiority had sunk in and as a protective mother. Emily knew "take her" had meant "kill her", but she obediently remained silent and still as her parents kept sharp eyes on the Sith Lord.

Sloan flashed a smile at the audience. "Ah, but of course they wanted to keep her for themselves! She has powers that can destroy all of us, all of this _planet!"_ He now glared at the Solos and at Emily, whose face had transformed from pale to deathly pallid. "Go on, child, kill me right now! I'm without weaponry."

"He's lying!" the child screamed. "And I won't hurt him. I can't; it's not right to -"

"Oh, listen to the pathetic little thing, reciting exactly what her parents planned for her speech!" hissed Sloan. The crowd had begun to form a cacophony of interjections and laughs. Han clutched Leia's and Emily's arms violently, his heart now making attempts to revolt from its bodily position. Whispering only so his wife could hear him, he announced, "Leia, I'm gonna tell them who he is. When I do, make a run for it." He was aching to kiss her, to embrace her intimately, to set free just about every itching emotion he was experiencing. He even wanted to cry in her embrace. _We're losing everything, _he understood, _and now we've got an entire planet's human population suspicious of us._

"Well, child?" persisted Sloan, coming up close to Luke with absolutely no semblance of fear in his façade. But Emily - worried about her uncle - sprung from the ground and landed, positioned precisely in the Sith Lord's way to Luke. "Emily, no!" Leia screamed.

It was too late for the name to be mistaken for something else; Sloan's device had detected Leia's words, and the girl's identity had been revealed. Luke sighed.

"Aha!" Sloan continued, grinning so profusely that his appearance no longer had a meanness about it; Emily noticed this and explained to him, kindly, "You don't have to be evil. I know you're a Sith, but I am not afraid of you. Uncle Luke told me -"

"Uncle Luke told me to _pretend I'm not dangerous!"_ mocked Sloan in half-amusement, half-anger. His brow was evidently sweaty, as the sun had commenced to set just east of the palace. "Very funny, Emily. But did you see her jump?" he questioned the crowd, once again turning around to encourage an uproar. He was successful, and so - caught in the wake of excitement - Darth Sloan gave his final words: "To each one of you here, I pronounce this moment to be a unifying one, an historic event that your children and grandchildren and all generations thereafter will speak of in the future. It is nothing but a people's outcry for war...against _this_ little psychopath and her untrustworthy allies!"

Those nearest to the palace applauded; and once the amplifier's last frequencies had reached the people farthest from the action, the entire congregation began to chant, "War for Theed! War for peace!"

The family saw it to be the appropriate time at which to flee. _It's not as if we'd gain any supporters by staying,_ Han thought glumly. While Sloan was receiving (and encouraging more) chants and applauses, Han signaled for the four of them to escape the scene. To their good fortune - albeit the only fortunate thing that had happened to them thus far - the mighty guards had entirely joined in Sloan's propagandistic celebration, and had not the slightest clue when the royal family of Naboo had left.


	3. Surprise

Not until Han had shut the entrance-ramp of the _Falcon_ did Leia realize the fact that they'd been kicked out of their home. "Han?" she called while in the cockpit, pulling levers and setting coordinates for anywhere in the galaxy (at this point, Leia didn't care where they were headed). _We're done,_ she thought in dread. _Our lives will never be the same._

"Leia, could you come over here?" called her husband from the center of the ship. Emily walked into the cockpit and stared at her mother, concern flooding her teary eyes. Leia turned to face her daughter.

"Mother, I've ruined everything," the child began in a crumbling voice. She trembled as Leia embraced her tightly. "I'm so sorry," Emily wept.

"Sweetheart, none of this is your fault. None of it."

"But they think I'm going to hurt them, and I would never -"

"Of course not, my darling," Leia assured her, stroking Emily's soft brown hair. "They don't know you." _She's just like me, blaming everything on herself,_ the woman mused sadly.

Han entered the cockpit with an annoyed air. "What're you doing? I need you to help with the hyperdrive -"

Leia's temper rose. "Just stop for a moment." She disengaged from Emily and communicated to her daughter through the Force to leave. Once the girl was far enough away from the site of the stirring argument, Han frowned at his wife. "What's going on?"

"Do you not see how distressed your daughter is?"

"Of course not, I've been working on getting this damned ship off the ground!" He proceeded past Leia and toward the cockpit-controls. Turning on the engines, Han added, "There's no time to lose to excess emotion!"

It took every bit of strength in Leia to not retort to Han. Nevertheless, she was fuming, and he kept his eyes curiously upon her. "What?" she asked defensively.

Han's expression turned grave. "Never mind about the ship; I'll ask Luke. You don't look so good."

Leia chuckled with sarcasm. "Thanks a lot."

"I mean," the Corellian continued, "you need R2 to examine you right now. Before anything gets worse."

Leia's mind was frozen; the last thing she needed was potential illness to further constrict her confidence. She looked at the floor for a moment before asking, "Where is he?"

Han was taken off-guard. "What?"

"Where's R2?"

"Damn it, the droids are still in the palace. I'll send him over to you. Go to the cabin." They parted ways immediately - without any last gesture of frustration - and Han slouched into one of the pilot-seats. He reached in his pocket for his comlink and called into the device, "3PO? I need you and R2 to get to the _Falcon_ now."

...

The astromech droid arrived to Leia's ironic delight; only ten minutes had transpired since Han had instructed her to retreat to the ship's passenger cabin. But at the moment, Leia was alone and nervous.

As R2 rolled into the tight-spaced room, Leia assured him, "I'm sure it's nothing; I might've caught cold -"

"Doooodeep!" exclaimed the droid, its pleasant presence comforting the overwhelmed woman just enough to make her more open to a check-up. "Thanks, R2," she acknowledged in reply.

...

Han had programmed the Falcon to head toward the Outer Rim. Of course, this meant ample time for Emily to express her every question regarding the so-called "Darth Sloan", about whom she'd known nothing until he'd appeared on Naboo that afternoon.

Luke and Emily were seated on the lounge-seats at the heart of the ship, accompanied only by a shut-down See-Threepio. Just as the pair's conversation had hit its minimum momentum, Emily questioned her uncle, "Why is Sloan after us?"

"He isn't happy with your mother and father for being married," responded her elder gently. He'd hoped not to phrase the delicate matter incorrectly, nor too harshly. _That's almost impossible, _he mused afterward.

Emily merely stared at Luke. "Well," her uncle continued, "it's really a matter of Sloan's nature. He's a Sith, Emily, and you remember what I've told you about -"

"Grandfather was a Jedi who became a Sith Lord, and then he turned back to the Light Side of the Force," the child recited proudly. Luke grinned, pleased as much by the girl's knowledge as by the memory. "Exactly," he confirmed.

"And," she proceeded, eyes widening, "Jedi Master Kenobi fought many of the Sith Lords. Darth Sidious was the scariest!"

The Jedi Master chuckled. "Yeah, he was. But do you remember who finished him?"

"Grandfather Anakin!" exclaimed the animated girl, her entire demeanor molding into something much brighter than that which Luke had predicted of her. _She's really handling this change well,_ he thought. But soon he would realize that his quick conclusion had been perhaps too premature.

Han passed by the two Jedi, focused only on getting to the cabin to check on Leia. She'd not returned from the room to which he'd sent her, and it had begun to concern the Corellian. _Maybe I've been too harsh with her. No: not maybe. I _have_ been._

Emily noticed her father's preoccupation and asked in curiosity, "Where are you going, Father?"

Turning quickly to answer his daughter, Han explained, "To find your mother. Has she been out here recently?"

Luke shook his head. "I haven't seen her since we all entered the ship. Sorry."

"No, it's fine," assured the other. Putting together the worst fake-smile, Han saluted his brother-in-law and his daughter. "The ship's on autopilot, but if anything happens, just call me."

"I can do it, Father," volunteered Emily; but her announcement was too late, as her father had already disappeared through the hallway.

...

Leia was in a state of panic. Her body shook even though she'd covered herself with the blankets from the sleeping-bunk. _Please let this be a dream,_ she repeated internally...until Han arrived with a knock.

The slide door automatically opened anyway, though she appreciated his chivalry. "Come in," she allowed in kind. But Leia's near-explosion heart was nowhere near receptiveness toward her husband's company.

At first he simply peeked in, as if to ensure that she was all right and then to return to the cockpit. Han, however, hungered for the reason for which his wife had acted earlier with an extraordinary load of emotion. "Hi," he greeted her, moving closer toward the bunk on which she sat.

Leia didn't stir. She opened her mouth, but the fear of speaking anything at all convinced her that she would only burst into tears if such occurred. Her hands were clasped tightly together, the perfect evidence to Han that something was - to her, at least - quite wrong.

"What was R2's diagnosis?"

She cringed in silence. Han frowned and proceeded to sit down next to his wife. "Is there something actually wrong?"

"No," she whispered, gathering her composure in reluctance. Her lips trembled, and every bit of calmness escaped her. If Han hadn't been as frazzled as he was due to the chaotic events of the day, he might have fully understood his wife's condition; but such was not the case, and he - on instinct - hugged Leia's body against his own. "Please tell me," he pressed.

Naturally, the woman tried to hold off the unknown. "How are we going to live? Everything we own is still there -"

"We have emergency things in the smuggling cabinets, below the ship's floorboards," Han reminded his wife quietly. His scared tone of voice had come through loud and clear, causing Leia to set free her first set of tears. Han swallowed hard while he rubbed her back. "It's going to be okay, sweetheart."

Her emotions were on the verge of explosion; hardly could she muster the energy to conceal her despair any longer. Squeezing her husband's hand as if out of fright, Leia communicated with unmistakable boldness, "We're going to have twins... They're two standard months along..."

Without regard for his wife's potential reaction to his shock, Han cupped a sweating hand over his dry mouth. He was speechless. Nothing about his countenance spoke elation, which was ironically the foundation of his present emotions. S_he's given me two more kids,_ he thought, _of whom I am the father._

Leia had begun to weep uncontrollably in his arms; he stroked her hair unconsciously, as his mind had already traveled to a more hopeful place. Finally realizing the importance of his wife sharing his same confidence and happiness in their new knowledge, Han kissed the top of her head and let her eyes peer into his for a moment. He reached for her hand and held it to her cheek. "You're an angel. I don't deserve this -"

"But this is the most horrible time to tell you," she protested, not listening to his appraisal. Gradually did Leia disengage the hand Han controlled from her cheek. "You're right: you certainly _don't_ deserve to hear it now."

The Corellian chuckled in the heartfelt joy; his eyes were filled with an excitement he'd not indulged in since the birth of his first child. As his smile persisted to reveal the contents inside his lips, Han shook his head and corrected her: "No, this is the perfect time. Because there's no such thing as a 'good' time for sharing that sort of news. It's cheery and moving on any occasion." He leaned in to kiss her on the lips, practically guarding them with a secure and passionate hold upon her delicate flesh. Leia shuddered out of mere surprise from the motions that Han worked against her lips; and soon - as she considered the fact that he was happy, meaning that she might as well be too - the woman joined in the fascination of intimate exploration. They prolonged the kiss, its intensity gladdening them as seconds transpired into minutes. Han felt as if he'd never been more enamored with his wife. _It's not just her; it's our children. All three of them._

Indeed, as the two conversed in the minutes that followed about the pregnancy, Han and Leia began to look hopefully toward the twins' birth, as they presently could only dream of the delight that their eldest child would make of it. "This is a wonderful thing," Han decided aloud. Leia nodded, and this delighted him.

"It's sure to bring our hopes up as we deal with this," she replied, vaguely referring to their present homelessness. "I want us to have a home long before the children are born."

The subject of relocation hardly interested the Corellian presently. "Will we know soon? I mean, whether we've got two boys, or a boy and a girl -"

"We're not going to find that out before they're born," announced the other adamantly. "Surprises are much more rewarding." This time, she was the one to instigate affection; her hands swept across Han's whiskers, and she felt his lips before joining them to her own. "I love you," he managed while she kept him in her charge, although he wasn't about to ask her to stop. _We definitely have needed a reunion like this,_ he mused. _Nice to think that our own babies have brought us together again._


	4. Rebels But Not Allies

"Why do we have to go to this convention, anyway?"

"Because," Leia told Han in an irked tone. "Mon Mothma is there. We're technically late... Oh, come on!" The controls of the _Millennium Falcon_ faltered and stubbornly did not respond to Leia's alterations to the ship's settings. Turning with amused hopelessness, she confessed to Han, "I'm afraid you're still better at negotiating with this thing than I am."

The Corellian grinned proudly. "If you'll just let me take the pilot's seat, then -"

"Mother! Father!"

Emily bolted into the cockpit, a sense of urgency resonating in her focused eyes. "Luke just took a wire apart... He's sorry, but that's why the _Falcon_ isn't working."

This news peeved Han, who shut his mouth and held his tongue. Leia replied to their daughter for him: "Can Luke please make sure it's reconnected, sweetheart? We need to reach lightspeed soon."

Emily nodded and left to find her uncle. Han was still dumbstruck, staring intently into the hallway into which the girl had traveled. When the _Falcon_ had finally made a notification-noise that the ship was back in total operation, Leia patted her husband's shoulder. "Mon's waiting..."

"I know, I know," he reaffirmed, and swiftly orchestrated the controls for lightspeed.

...

The meeting-place for the Rebel Alliance's mandatory convention was a newly adopted spacecraft, the _Systemica_. As the Falcon approached the two-level multipurpose ship, a probe droid hovered near the cargo ship and transmitted a signal stating, "Welcome. Please identify."

Han was impressed by the Alliance's technology. "I have a feeling things have changed since we left," he thought aloud.

"We've never _left,"_ corrected Leia, nudging him in gentle admonishment. "The past six years haven't been all fun and games. Life happened." She sent a signal to the probe and answered, "General Solo and Leia Organa-Solo."

Luke entered the cockpit. "Was that a probe?"

"Yeah," Han affirmed, "the Alliance has finally stepped up its security." He turned around in his chair. "Where's Emily?"

"She's in the bunk," replied Luke. "I've told her that she will need to stay with me during the convention. I think it's best."

Leia put a hand to her forehead. "It would have been better...had Sloan not exposed her identity to an entire planet. At this point, we really have nothing to hide."

Han shook his head and leaned toward Leia, placing a hand on her lap. "We still do." His expression was one of compassion and pride; as a result of his chivalrous answer, Leia simply gazed at him. Disagreement was brewing between her thoughts and his, but she put it as kindly as she could:

"They'll find out soon enough. Mon's sure to notice; she's a mother, you know."

This genuinely took Han by surprise. "You're serious." It was not an interrogative. He knew his wife was telling the truth, but the idea that Mothma had a family - a woman of a solely political mind, of apparently no alliance but to her cause as Supreme Chancellor - was mind-boggling to the Corellian.

Nodding, Leia turned in her seat to return to the controls of the Falcon. "I didn't mean to stall our arrival. Let's get a move on."

...

The lobby halls of the _Systemica_ were crowded, and yet Luke, Leia, and Han felt they had never beheld something of such grandeur. The cream-colored floor tiles twinkled, and the iridescent lighting did justice to the multicolored buildings that resided inside the spacecraft. Han thought the display astoundingly liberal, and he liked that.

"Seems this place has really changed," he reemphasized after the group had been walking down the main corridor for a minute. Emily - she donned one of her uncle's large Jedi cloaks - kept Luke's exact pace, her tiny figure practically attached to the man and his every movement. Meanwhile Leia scanned the surrounding buildings for Chancellor Mothma's office. _This ship houses a city, _she thought as more crowds emerged from buildings that appeared to be political meeting-places. _Wonder how much of my money went toward -_

"General Solo?" The voice was familiar, but unsatisfactorily so; Chancellor Mothma gave the Solos a stale smile. Luke and Emily hurried off to disappear within the crowds.

Mothma refused to acknowledge Leia for the first thirty seconds. Gingerly (or was it?) toward Han she admitted, "We have certainly missed having such a celebrated general among us. I'm surprised you didn't come back, begging for a position in our renovation-planning. As you can see, we've completed the project."

"It looks very updated, yes," commented Han vaguely. He had noticed Leia's almost invisible role in the conversation, and for Han this was exponentially enhancing the level of distrust in Mothma's loyalties. "Wonderful to be here, Chancellor." He reached for Leia's hand gradually and squeezed it; it was painful enough for the Corellian to carry conversation with a woman, let alone with Mon Mothma.

Quickly Leia got the picture. "Chancellor Mothma, we are very honored to find you here; however, our situation is critical, and we thought it best to consult you about it." Her body was shaking, but perhaps this was due in part to the personal circumstances that had robbed the Solo family of their former lives. So much hope had Leia put into this authoritative figure whom she had forever admired, that now Mothma's underwhelming reaction and response to Leia's plea disconcerted the latter woman.

Mothma drew a deep breath before imparting her confession. "I believe I know the crisis of which you speak. Does the name 'Prince Zizor of Axxila' sound familiar?"

"Yes, but his real identity -"

"I know who he is," interrupted Mothma curtly. Leia's eyes widened upon perceiving a particularly disturbing anger in the Chancellor's countenance. "You do?" she almost whispered, although Han had heard it to be far less significant to Mothma's previous words. A battle had begun between the women.

"Yes, of course. He assisted me with the election six years ago," explained Mothma pridefully, her eyes now glistening from the memory. "He is a good man, and very honorable too. He could have run for the position, but he chose not to run in order to help me -"

"Chancellor," broke in Leia; she could not believe her ears, and what was more: Mothma had just presented her allegiance to Sloan. _This is not good,_ Leia decided a thousand times internally.

It took such repetition to hammer this news into her mind.

_Mon Mothma is not on my side._

"How did this come about? When did you meet him?" Han was full of questions but quite unwilling to hear their answers. Mon flashed an accusatory glare at the Corellian and retorted, "Must you know every detail of my political life? General Solo, Zizor's fame has only just begun, after your daughter's exposure on Naboo; but he and I -"

"Wait, what do you know about that?" Leia intruded once again, her tone of voice this time much harsher than before. Mothma only chuckled.

"If you intend to tell me that the man was lying about that girl being your daughter -"

"Hey," cut in Han, defense strong in his words, "she is, in fact, our daughter -"

"Exactly! Zizor was telling the truth -"

"- and we had the right to conceal her from...well, _this!"_ Han motioned to everything around them: the bustling crowds, the fancy buildings, the thousands of Holos with the latest news playing for all to watch. _Damn it, _he suddenly realized as he surveyed these screens. _My entire family's on there..._

By this point, the Chancellor had grown uninterested in her former colleagues' efforts to defend themselves. "I don't just understand why you don't confess to the galaxy that you've committed a crime against the people of Naboo."

Leia was furious. "And what crime was that? Do you believe the galaxy would have flourished all the more, had my husband and I disclosed our personal information?" She was about to continue with her rant when a passerby exclaimed, "It's the Solo family, right here in the ship!"

Han and Leia were not the only ones upset by this publicity. Mothma leaned in and threatened in a low voice, "Either leave the premises as criminals or stay here to be arrested. I'm giving you options."

"How _could_ you, Mon?" Leia exclaimed, shaking her head so violently that dizziness overcame her. "To believe a complete stranger - a Sith Lord -"

"Oh, that's another thing," Mothma reminded. "I remember when you falsely identified Prince Zizor in the Senate. Don't make me use that against you, Leia."

Han was done. "Okay." He wrapped up the conflict by grabbing his wife's resistant arm, turning away from the Chancellor without recognition. "Leia, we're leaving."

But Leia was not finished with the argument. "I'm surprised your husband hasn't convinced you of your newfound insanity! Suddenly this galaxy nonsensically explodes on my family, and you don't have the decency to grant us a trial!"

The Solos began to storm off in a rush, hoping to spot Luke and Emily in order to be finished with the ship. However, the woman whom they had left behind bellowed the very sentence that would - in due time - cause Leia to doubt Mothma's current stance on the situation.

Shouted Mon, "My husband and son are dead!"

The entirety of the ship froze when this phrase came out so coldly. Only the Holos continued to sound, and the news story on Theed Palace's most recent discovery echoed through every hall: "Han and Leia Solo have, after six years of unlawfully hiding her, a young and destructive daughter."

...

Just as the crowds had begun to encompass the Solos, Emily sprinted over to her parents and his within her mother's cloak. "Mother, I want to go," she whispered. Unfortunately, the lobby hall was too hushed for the girl' words to go unheard. Soon various species were questioning in their native languages whether the child would suddenly lash out and exploit her powers.

"Don't let that filthy sorceress escape! Arrest her now!"

"No, she must get away from this peaceful place, else she'll destroy it!"

In the midst of the chaotic arguing, the Chancellor retrieved her comlink from her cloak-pocket and dialed it. Her face grew dark-gray as she discreetly retreated to her office building across the hallway. No one but Han noticed.

"Get outta here!" some abjectly rude humans roared at the Solos. Emily cringed within the confines of Leia's garments, while Han held both hands in front of the pocket housing his blaster. "Leia, where's Luke?" he asked quietly. "We need to go."

"Don't know," responded the woman, awestruck though she was to even speak. Emily emerged only partially from her cocoon and announced to her parents, "He's at the ship. We walked there together. He told me to come back to -"

"Well, that was his best plan yet," muttered Han with gritted teeth. He had thus far attempted to appear intimidating, so that none in the growing crowds would try to attack his family. "Let's just go."

But the task proved to be easier announced than executed; Leia had to clasp her husband's arm on several occasions, during which strangers moved to separate them. Emily had to fight every impulse in her body not to utilize her Jedi skills. And worst of all, no one would allow the family to pass without obnoxious personal questions directed in their way.

"General Solo, where does your family live?"

"Leia, why did you marry _that_ man?"

"When will your child admit to her evildoings?"

The creativity of questions expanded as the Solos exited the lobby hall and neared the hangar, where the _Millennium Falcon_ sat obliviously and sedately. "Emily, get to the bunk," commanded the girl's father, his mind racing in contemplation over where to take the family next. _I won't make _that_ mistake ever again,_ he thought in guilt.

A few nosy alliance members walked behind Han, Leia, and Emily as they approached the cargo ship. "Where are you going?" exclaimed one human. A Twi-Lek bellowed in her native language that the Solos were not worthy of escape, and that they needed to turn themselves in for treason. _Either the media is a damned good persuader, _thought Leia, _or people are going insane altogether._ She entered through the Falcon's entrance ramp as soon as Luke (who was inside the vehicle) lowered it. Before Han or Leia could warn their daughter, Emily had turned around to face the information-thirsty people.

Her eyes were flooded with tears; the girl could not make out a single contour in any species' face. But her kindness even in this crisis prevailed. "We are members of the Rebel Alliance," she reasoned. "The story on the Holo is all wrong; I can't do anything horrible, I promise!"

"Emily!" screamed the child's father. From his higher altitude due to the elevation of the entrance ramp, Han had noticed a suspicious group of cloaked beings, all of their hands within the mysterious interiors of their robes. The girl did not listen to Han's cry, however, and continued to defend her family with the utmost confidence.

"Please believe us," she pleaded, her body now shrinking to the ground as her limbs grew weak from her overwhelming situation. "Darth Sloan is the real enemy, the one who came to Theed -"

"Solo, get your child outta here!" demanded one of the nearer crowd members. He made an aggressive motion toward the child, whereupon Emily back-flipped and landed on the entrance ramp, adjacent to her father. Han cursed under his breath. _Great, this ruins everything -_

"She's a Sith!" boomed a powerful anonymous voice; another disagreed. "No, she's a Jedi -"

The Corellian wouldn't hear any more. He snatched Emily's arm abrasively and escaped with her into the ship.

The Solo family heard screams of vengeance as the _Falcon_ soared out of the _Systemica's_ hangar.


End file.
